Age of Ash: The Sunday Times bestseller - The Kithamar Trilogy Book 1

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When a new prince rises to power, it marks the beginning of a year of tumultuous events in the city. Age of Ash is the first book in a fantasy trilogy set in the city of Kithomar with a plot setup centering around gangs of orphans who set about pickpocketing the populace, mysterious witches, and a knife of power. I feel that this book only touched upon the surface of this though, so I’m eager to discover much more because Abraham definitely has my attention here. Daniel Abraham at long last completed the groundbreaking Expanse series with writing partner Ty Franck at the end of 2021.

The power conspiracies and delicate magic of Kithamar are woven through the narrative but become more obvious in the last third of the novel with more time being spent with the antagonistic characters. Without giving anything away, events occur that escalate the narrative and reveal more of the city and explore religions, sects, cultures that clash and mesh in this vast city. Things are kept so mysterious it's hard to get a grasp on what the stakes are or why things are important. This is the first book in a trilogy that covers the same year of events in a great city seen from the viewpoint of different people in each book.

Nevertheless, like I said, once that 40% mark hits, I was engrossed and wanted to barrel through the rest. The standout theme for me was one of grief, with Alys, our main character, trying to come to terms with the loss of her brother, while also trying to unravel the mystery surrounding his death.

Alys and her allies (some old friends, some relcutant, some trushworthy and some not) must choose whether the dark truths that lie at the heart of the city are worth the danger in confronting them.

As the book opens, we learn that the city’s ruler, Prince Byrn a Sal, has died after less than a year on the throne. We can see and smell its crooks and nooks, its best and worst; the city itself becomes a protagonist that can help you or kill you if you’re careless. Both characters are written with depth and complexity, as you'd expect from Abraham, and the ultra-tight focus on the two protagonists for most of its length gives the novel a pacy feel. Kithamar is a center of trade and wealth, an ancient city with a long, bloody history where countless thousands live and their stories unfold.